There’s a fairly robust consensus growing in terms of figuring out the gamers more than likely to contend on the PGA Championship this weekend.
Golf’s second main makes it return to Valhalla Golf Membership in Louisville, Ky., for the primary time since Rory McIlroy hoisted the Wanamaker Trophy in 2014. McIlroy unsurprisingly is without doubt one of the favorites coming into the week, partly as a result of he’s enjoying some superb golf. He gained final week on the Wells Fargo and some weeks in the past with Shane Lowry on the Zurich Traditional.
McIlroy can also be among the many favorites as a result of he brings a really useful talent set to Valhalla. As soon as once more, the PGA of America has arrange the course to play very lengthy, and with rain within the forecast, it’s going to play slower than likely would like. The fairways are additionally quite slender, and with smaller inexperienced complexes, the gamers more than likely to dot the highest of the leaderboard are those that can hit it lengthy and much. Clearly, that type of sport performs each week on Tour, but when Valhalla performs the way in which most anticipate it to, the large bombers are going to have a fair greater benefit this week.
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PGA Championship Energy Rankings: Rating Prime Wanamaker Trophy Contenders
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We all know all about McIlroy and the opposite superstars atop the betting board. Right here, we went a little bit deeper for some lengthy photographs (75-1 and longer) who match the invoice and will make some noise on the PGA Championship.
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(All betting odds from FanDuel Sportsbook)
Hideki Matsuyama (75-1)
This is likely to be the primary time the identical participant is featured on each our energy rankings and lengthy photographs. It’s a danger, in fact. Matsuyama’s again damage is a significant X-factor. His off-the-tee sport is trending down a bit, and the putter remains to be his greatest subject. That being stated, he’s simply so strong from tee to inexperienced that he’s arduous to disregard at that quantity.
Matt Fitzpatrick (80-1)
He’s not in one of the best of kind, however he checks the packing containers. Fitzpatrick utterly reinvented himself over the past decade by including a ton of swing pace. Regardless of having only one top-10 end in his final 5 begins, he does rank eighth on Tour in whole driving, which accounts for each distance and accuracy. He’s additionally one of many higher long-iron gamers within the subject and putts properly from 10 ft and in. He’s only a strong participant who’s unlikely to offer a ton of strokes again to the sector, and as he has proved previously, he can contend for — and win — main championships. Getting that at 80-1 is tough to move up.
Si Woo Kim (90-1)
His simple placing struggles lower into his win fairness, so he would possibly simply be a greater DFS play than something. Kim is available in with three straight top-20 finishes, together with a pair of signature occasions. He’s additionally top-of-the-line tee-to-green gamers in th subject, so if he can simply putt common to the sector, he can contend. The final time he gained on the course in placing was at The Gamers Championship the place he completed tied for sixth. He additionally has gained strokes across the inexperienced in his final seven begins. It’s all there — you simply want one week of placing.
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Stephen Jaeger (150-1)
Look, he’s 150-1 for a cause, however Jaeger’s failure to contend gained’t be as a result of he’s not lengthy sufficient. He ranks thirteenth within the subject in driving distance over his final 12 rounds, and he has performed properly just lately. Jaeger has completed worse than twenty first in simply one in every of his final 5 begins, a run that features a win on the Houston Open. The strategy sport leaves rather a lot to be desired, which we noticed the Masters the place he trunk-slammed after a few poor days of ball-striking. The considering right here, although, is that Valhalla favors the bombers so closely that somebody like Jaeger simply drives his technique to the highest of the leaderboard.
Keith Mitchell (150-1)
It seems to be like he has discovered one thing. Mitchell was within the wilderness late final yr, however he has now made the weekend in 9 of his final 10 begins with six top-20 finishes. He’s again to borderline elite ball-striking, and he ranks sixth in strokes gained off the tee, fifth in tee-to-green. The quick sport is a borderline catastrophe, and it finally will in all probability be what does him in. He’s much like Jaeger, although, the place if he’s 300 yards off the tee within the fairway all week, he ought to be capable of pepper the greens in a much more comfy method than the remainder of the sector.
